My Love, My Hate
by Woodsballer
Summary: Two bounty hunters meet on the distant planet of Kew. One knows nothing, the other knows too much. Will she forgive him or return the feelings he gave her? FoxXKrystal Oneshot.


**Disclaimer: The characters in this story are property of Nintendo and are not used for profit. The story is mine; any use, whole or partial, of this story without permission is not permitted.**

**My Love, My Hate**

Kew. Despicable planet. Half barren deserts by an eternal day, the other half a chilly eternal night. Though rich with oxygen, the atmosphere is dangerously thin, making even the simplest task exhaustive after any moderate amount of time. No one ever came to this backwater planet except the scum of the universe.

That was why she was here. Most of her weeks were spent on this accursed planet in this accursed bar.

She chuckled. This planet knew nothing of curses.

Her eyes drifted over her shoulder and scanned the small room. Three tables held occupants, a total of ten bodies including herself and Han, the bartender.

The table at the far end grabbed her gaze. Its only man was facing away from her, but she knew him. Chal Qurong, worth 17 million in interplanetary currency. He was the second highest-value criminal in history, only topped by an insane man that somehow managed to destroy a planet several decades ago. Nearly every bounty hunter alive was after him. It had taken her five standard months to trace him here.

She turned back to the bar and sipped the Septhan Ale in her glass. At one time the smell alone would have sent her to the floor. Now, it went down like water, barely affecting her.

A door at the far end of the bar slid open with a hiss. There was a small whoosh of air as the pressure difference sucked air outside. And then it was all silent again as the door slid closed except for soft metallic footsteps. She shifted her ear to focus on the table.

The new man sat down. "How are you doing?" he asked softly.

"Well enough," Chal answered. "What's the latest word?"

"Your daughter is well." His voice dropped to barely a whisper. "Another ship dropped out of warp at the edge of the system. Rumor is that another hunter is on board."

Chal scowled. "There's getting to be too many around here. I need to leave."

"Are you sure? The best place to hide is in plain sight."

"No. This is too much. Get me transport off of this rock now."

The man breathed deeply in thought. "I can get one for tomorrow morning."

"Do it."

She nodded to herself. She should take him tonight before he moved again.

The front door behind her slid open. The sudden draft of air pulled her hair back and chilled her neck. She barely noticed.

The new person stepped forward. A shoulder knocked into hers. "Oh, excuse me," he said politely.

Her heart froze and then restarted, pounding. She couldn't have recognized that voice. It had been nearly three years. And here?

He took a seat at the end of the bar. "Cornerian beer."

Her heart skipped again. That was definitely his voice.

"We don't have that," Han replied. "Closest thing we have is Tauren."

"I'll take it."

She risked a glance over. She saw his hand first. Black nails on powerful fingers. His hand was covered in orange-red fur. That hand… So many times it had held her own. She could feel its touch even now. That arm had warmed her shoulder many cold nights. That shoulder that she rested on, slept on.

"Hey, you alright?"

Han's voice tore her eyes away. He was pouring a glass in front of her. He was one of the few people that she trusted anymore.

"I don't know." She forced her eyes forward. No need to get emotional.

Han walked back out of her field of vision and placed the cup down. "Anything else?"

"How about some information? I'm looking for a man named Qurong."

"Qurong? The 10 million credit crime lord?"

"17 million, actually," she said aloud. She turned her head, determining to see him. Their eyes met and she knew.

Time seemed to stand still. A thousand emotions grappled for her heart: love, joy, fear, hate. Her body was in such shock that she didn't know what to do.

His eyes broke away, allowing time to resume its flow. They scanned down her form. But they held one look, curiosity. "Fellow bounty hunter?" he asked calmly.

"Fox…"

His eyebrow arched. "You know me?"

Her face held stern, but in one moment, her heart crashed. He spoke to her as if she were a stranger. "I know many bounty hunters."

"I didn't realize my reputation goes this far out. Well, you know my name. What might yours be?"

Anger tried to wrestle for her control; how could he not remember her after all these years. After all these years, she still tossed in her sleep at his memory. She turned her eyes away, as to hide the tears as anything, and picked up her drink. "I have no name."

"You must have something that people call you by." He followed her in taking a sip of his drink. He scowled at the taste.

She sighed. "To anyone that it matters, I am Kursed."

She didn't see, but she could sense his eyes bulged. "Kursed? _THE_ Kursed?" Her silence was answer enough. There was a slip of metal on leather and a click. "I'm taking you in."

She glanced over at the pistol pointed at her temple. "Put that thing away. It's not worth taking me in for." She brought her hand up and brushed it away casually.

He put it straight back. "There's still a warrant for you. You don't kill 18 innocents and just walk away from it."

She scoffed and sipped her drink. "What does it matter?"

That gave him pause. "Don't you care about life at all?"

"Not really." She downed the last inch of liquid and slammed the cup down. "I'm already dead." She dropped a few coins on the bar and walked out.

----------

He stormed after her, stopping just outside the door. She was walking away. His gun arm leveled. "Stop!" She obeyed. "Don't make this hard for yourself."

For a moment, she did nothing. She was breathing deeply, but that could be the atmosphere. "You don't remember me, do you?" she asked softly.

"Should I?"

"You should." She looked upward. The moonlight made her purplish hair almost turn to a shade of blue. "We used to gaze at the stars together. You promised me you would never let anything happen to me."

"What are you talking about?" he shouted, cutting her off.

"This." She spun suddenly, locking eyes with him. Her eyes flashed blue and pierced into his soul. Images flashed through his mind, all of them focused on one woman. And then they were gone, leaving him out of breath. When he looked back, the bounty hunter in front of him seemed to have changed. She was still the same, but he saw her for who she really was.

His knees suddenly went weak. "Krystal?"

A weak smile came across her lips. "So you do recognize me."

He looked over her, seeing her for the first time. "What happened to you?"

"You happened to me!" she fired back angrily. "I couldn't live without you! I drove myself crazy!"

"I…" Fox was crying before he realized it. A hundred sleepless nights returned to his mind. He'd gone over that fateful day in his head thousands of times, praying he could have undone it. "I…" He brought his hands up and realized he was still holding the pistol. With a jerky throw, he tossed it away. "Oh, God, I'm sorry."

-----------

Watching Fox suddenly break down nearly tore her to her knees. He hadn't forgotten her.

A sudden wave of emotion swept through her. She felt tragic at making him feel this way. She felt hope at seeing that he still cared for her. She felt anger at making her feel the same way.

She couldn't do this.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen like this. I just wanted to keep you safe."

She turned away from him. "If you wanted me safe, you would have kept me close instead of pushing me away."

A dreadful silence hung over them. "Leave, Fox. And please, don't ever come here again."

She walked away, leaving him weeping in the moonlight.

----------

All he could do was watch her walk away, every step she took driving the knife in his heart deeper. He fell to his knees and cried; cried for the state that he pushed her into, cried for the love he still had for her, cried that he would never hold her.

He pushed himself to his feet. He couldn't go through all of this. Not again.

But she was already gone.

He tore back into the bar, practically throwing the door into the wall, and stormed to the bar. "Where is she? Where does she go?"

The bartender looked up at him, shocked. "Who?"

"Krystal." The bartender remained confused. He shook his head. "Uh… Kursed. Where can I find Kursed?"

"Her… ship's usually in Hangar 11. About two kliks east…"

Fox was already gone before he finished.

----------

The door slid shut behind her. As soon as the hiss vanished, so did the last of her strength. She fell back against the door and slid to her seat. Her head was buried into her arms and the tears started to soak her fur.

The whole world became dark, but she welcomed the darkness. As long as it was dark, she couldn't see him.

Footsteps clanged on metal. A fist knocked against the metal at her back. "Krystal? You in there?"

"Go away, Fox," she managed to choke out between sobs.

"I can't do that, Krystal. Not again," he said, fighting through tears. "I shouldn't have forced you to leave in the first place. Every minute of my life since you left has been hell because… I love you! Come hell or high water, I love you. And I pray to the God above that you feel the same way because I won't be able to stand it if you left again. Krystal, please." A sob stopped him. He banged on the door again. "Please…"

She softly pushed herself to her feet and the door slid open. They locked tear-filled eyes. She didn't need her empathy to see his heart.

She practically threw herself into him and he caught her, pulling her tightly. She buried her face into his neck. His fur was wet, but warm, and she drank in his scent.

"I missed you." They were simple words, but she loved hearing them.

Kursed mysteriously vanished from the Kew system that night. One week later, Krystal returned to the Lylat system to the open arms of her friends.

**A/N: Special Thanks to littleurmey (beta reader).**


End file.
